body stiff, sore; thumb jammed from a surfboard, toe broken from a garden divot. it's been an august to remember, so much so that this post deserves no capital letters. it seems that life is running on a flow that any capitalization would surely disrupt.
back in the city, people are talking in cafes. thinking and speaking in fragments, it is a good return. the air is cool, autumn is approaching. it may be that the nicest summer weekend has just passed and we are now set on an arc towards cooler airs.
where does one begin when the stillness is too thick to compare?
my last night in Philly, spent with K and G, philosophizing and discussing current environmental trends. woke to a rooftop and city skyline. Picked up A for our adventure up North. We got a late start. A deaf dog was in the seat. Her breath stank (and would continue to do so)
We drove up past Scranton, 81 North, all the way to Clayton, New York. We took our time, bought sandwiches, repacked our bags. We had ten days together ahead of us. We barely knew each other, but we knew how well we could. On the drive up we talked relationships, we talked Philly, we talked being a twenty something, we laughed, we listened to good music, we started to shed skin and skin and skin and by the time we arrived at the docks in Clayton to meet with A, J, and Z---we were expectationless and free. We left our phones in the car. We wouldn't need them. We took a bag each and boarded the boat.
Ten days later. Back on the mainland, we had bodies coated in hard work, hot summer sun, river water, hair unwashed. We had minds filled with laughter and contemplation. We had silence, we had dedication to ourselves, we had comraderie. We had built chairs and swam naked. We had eaten steaks with Parisians and drank with a meat farmer. We had gotten drunk on the docks, we had watched stars for hours, we had drank coffee with the natives. We went to a Canadian bar. We mooned a tourist boat. We cooked from a garden and we went to sleep early. Dropping A off in Syracuse, we felt overstimulated by the people and the lights, but it didn't matter. We said our goodbyes and while sadness lingered, a sense of beginning was stimulated. Our friendship, solidified.
Driving home. A seed had been planted. Things seemed slow and magnificant. Corn was being sold on the roadside every three miles. The thoughts of city were not so overwhelming. The thought of drinking a cup of good coffee in a cafe sounded exceptional.
I quit my job.
My family took me in for a few days, the farm took me in for a few days with some hard work and meals. My city friend took me in for a few days. And then r's family at the shore took me in for a few more. My august solidified. My consistency rewarded with a note from "mom" and a Monday morning spent with my first surfing experience.
I think now, I'm ready for Autumn. I'm ready for work that is real and good and mind boggling. I'm ready for time to slow itself. I'm ready to dig and not scrape the surface. I'm ready to take care of myself.
Sometimes we go on strange routes that seem illogical. But they're good. Sometimes we forget that what we need is staring us directly in the face.
Fashion update: now in:
gold watches
full figured women
the color white
vacations- take them. live them. rest well.
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